The Invisible Cut Read online

  frame grab 11

  When the editor cuts to the next shot — of Benjamin seen through Mrs. Robinson’s bent leg (Frame grab #12)— the audience experiences the final and most dramatic arc of the scene. It’s when Benjamin says the most memorable line of all: “Mrs. Robinson…you’re trying to seduce me.” The shot itself is also the most famous one in the movie, but in fact, the camera angle is not realistic at all. For one thing, it doesn’t make any sense as a reverse shot. Even though she has her foot propped up on the bar stool in a previous shot (Frame grab #11) the position and angle of her leg doesn’t match with this subsequent shot. In fact, she would have to be a contortionist to sit at the bar and have that angle through her leg really happen. But by putting him in this position inside her bent leg, the editor makes Benjamin looks smaller and more pathetic than in any of the other foreground/background shots. The contrived composition works well to exaggerate his powerlessness and the surreal situation. (There was actually another shot [Slate 21] — a close-up of Benjamin through her leg, with variable focus — which wouldn’t have been as funny, because he wouldn’t have been as clearly small and ridiculous.) The editor then cuts to Mrs. Robinson laughing (the “out” frame is Frame grab #13).

  frame grab 12

  frame grab 13

  This is the only other instance beyond the alcoholic confession that the editor chooses to be close on Mrs. Robinson. This close-up of Mrs. Robinson does not match at all with the shot of her at the bar before this shot. It’s actually a “pickup shot,” meaning a portion of the angle filmed to supplement the original shooting of the same angle, usually because the original coverage was inadequate. In this shot, Mrs. Robinson’s head is thrown back, her eyes are closed, and her mood is much more animated. Obviously the editor wanted this particular reaction, because it has such an unnerving effect on Benjamin and leaves him so vulnerable. Was she trying to seduce him or not? Even we, the audience, can’t be sure what the laugh means. It’s one of those moments where we’re ahead of Benjamin but not completely ahead of Mrs. Robinson, although we suspect it’s part of a ploy to make Benjamin feel guilty and embarrassed — and become putty in her hands. This close shot also doesn’t match up with the subsequent pickup shot of Benjamin and Mrs. Robinson (the “in” frame is Frame grab #14). Her hand is not touching her ear anymore, and her head is more upright than that previous pickup shot. But the audience is focusing on the mortified reaction of Benjamin, who again looks powerless in this foreground/background composition.

  frame grab 14

  SCENE TWO: THE BEDROOM

  After the scene in her den, Mrs. Robinson talks Benjamin into going to her daughter Elaine’s room to see her portrait. She then asks him to unzip her dress and once she gets down to her slip, he panics and says he has to go home. Before he leaves, she tells him to bring up her purse. He refuses, but she does convince him to leave her purse in her daughter’s room. He nervously reenters the bedroom from the hallway.

  CUT TO:

  INT. ELAINE’S ROOM – NIGHT

  Close shot of Elaine’s portrait.

  Benjamin’s arm reaches out in front of the portrait to deposit Mrs. Robinson’s purse on a shelf. The reflection from the glass front of the portrait shows Mrs. Robinson enter — stark naked — and just as she turns around to close the door.…

  FRAME GRAB #1

  CUT TO:

  Close-up of Benjamin turned slightly away to the right. The sound of the door slams off screen. He spins his head around to the left, reacting.

  FRAME GRAB #2

  CUT TO:

  Close-up of Benjamin turned right, in profile. He spins around to the left profile, reacting.

  FRAME GRAB #3

  CUT TO:

  Close-up of Benjamin turned even more to the right, away from the camera. He spins around and faces camera, in shock.

  FRAME GRAB #4

  BENJAMIN

  Oh Go-…

  CUT TO:

  Close shot of woman’s naked torso in profile beside doorknob. Her body starts to turn…

  FRAME GRAB #5

  BENJAMIN

  (OS)

  …od.

  CUT TO:

  Medium close shot of Mrs. Robinson over Benjamin. She continues to turn and face him.

  FRAME GRAB #6

  BENJAMIN

  (OS)

  Oh…Let me out.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  Don’t be nervous.

  CUT TO:

  Medium close shot of Benjamin over Mrs. Robinson.

  BENJAMIN

  Get away from that door.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  I want to say something.…

  CUT TO:

  Close shot of breasts.

  CUT BACK TO:

  Medium close shot of Benjamin over Mrs. Robinson.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  …first.

  BENJAMIN

  Jesus Christ!

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  Benjamin, I want you to know that I’m available to you and if you won’t sleep with me…

  Medium close shot of Benjamin over Mrs. Robinson.

  FRAME GRAB #7

  CUT TO:

  Close shot of mid torso.

  FRAME GRAB #8

  CUT BACK TO:

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  …this time,

  BENJAMIN

  Oh my Christ.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  …if you won’t sleep with me this time I want you to know you can call me up anytime you want and we can make some kind…

  FRAME GRAB #9

  CUT BACK TO:

  Close shot of breasts.

  FRAME GRAB #10

  CUT BACK TO:

  Medium close shot of Benjamin over Mrs. Robinson.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  …of arrangement. Do you understand what I’m say…?

  Screaming car sound off screen.

  BENJAMIN

  Let me out.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  Benjamin, do you understand what I’m say…?

  BENJAMIN

  Yes, yes let me out.

  CUT BACK TO:

  Close shot of mid torso.

  CUT BACK TO:

  Medium close shot of Benjamin over Mrs. Robinson.

  MRS. ROBINSON

  (OS)

  Because I find you very attractive. Any time you want you can…

  Car door slams off screen. Benjamin turns, suddenly.

  BENJAMIN

  Oh, Jesus…

  He moves toward her…

  FRAME GRAB #11

  BENJAMIN

  …that’s…

  He ducks his head.

  CUT TO:

  Close shot of mid torso.

  BENJAMIN

  (OS)

  …“him”!

  His arm starts to come into frame.

  FRAME GRAB #12

  He pulls her away from door. His hand unlocks door and closes it shut behind him.

  DECONSTRUCTION

  Scene edited by Sam O’Steen

  Shots that were used:

  > Close shot of Elaine’s portrait

  > Close shot of woman’s naked torso

  > Close-up of Benjamin, turns

  > Medium close shot of Mrs. Robinson over Benjamin

  > Close shot of breasts

  > Close shot of mid torso

  > Medium close shot of Benjamin over Mrs. Robinson

  Shots that weren’t used:

  > Big close-up of Mrs. Robinson, back to door

  > Close-up side angle of Benjamin

  > Close-up front view of Benjamin

  > Midriff shot to Mrs. Robinson

  > Close-up side angle on Benjamin

  > Close-up front view of Benjamin

  > Zoom big close-up Benjamin’s eyes bulging

  > Zoom big close-up of Benjamin’s eyes
>
  > Close to Mrs. Robinson over Benjamin

  > Medium close-up Benjamin through Mrs. Robinson’s left arm

  > Medium long shot to naked body through Benjamin’s arm

  > Medium close-up to naked body over Benjamin’s left ear

  > Midriff high for left body, left hand on hip

  > Camera low to midriff and breasts tilted to right side

  > Breasts flat against door, camera tilted left

  > Mid torso body against wall, left hand on hip

  > Camera high to breasts and midriff… tilt left

  > Full figure nude

  The list above shows that many more shots were filmed for this scene than were actually used. There were an unusual number of angles filmed, probably because of the daring nature of the scene. But the editing choice was daring as well, and strongly illustrates another editing truism, which is not to fall into the trap of using a lot of different angles just because the director shot them.

  In the first shot (Frame grab #1) where we, the audience, see Mrs. Robinson’s naked body reflected in the glass before Benjamin does, we have the luxury of objective anticipation. We know something shocking is about to happen before the character does. The shot of the portrait starts the moment the edge of her body appears in the reflection and ends (with the “out” frame, Frame grab #1) just as she turns and slams the door. The first cut of his reaction (from Frame grab #1 to #2) is cued by the sound of the door slamming. That is, we hear the door slam at the end of that portrait shot (Frame grab #1), but it actually comes over the next shot, the one of Benjamin shown in Frame grab #2. The editor knew Benjamin’s reaction was going to be powerful, so he cut to Benjamin’s head spinning around, a complete half circle, and then he cut to Benjamin doing the same thing again (Frame grab #3), then still again (Frame grab #4). The three takes, all the “out” frames of the shots, are almost pure repetition, although each time his head turns a little more to the left. That means in the first two shots he ends up in profile and by the third shot (Frame grab #4) he’s facing the camera; the editor saved the take with the most visual impact for last. The sound of Mrs. Robinson locking the door is also perfectly timed out to coincide with the last swing of Benjamin’s head. The editor shouldn’t have gotten away with this repetition of shots, but he knew this was a great moment and took a chance, figuring we would be willing to suspend logic and let movie time be milked as much as possible.

  frame grab 1

  frame grab 2

  frame grab 3

  frame grab 4

  Benjamin’s line, “Oh God,” overlaps into the next shot of her naked torso (the “out” frame is Frame grab #5), which intensifies the moment and smooths the transition. The subsequent shot of Mrs. Robinson’s face and shoulders (the “in” frame is Frame grab #6) could have been an awkward cut, since the angle doesn’t really change from the closer body-double shot shown in Frame grab #5. But the cut seems smooth, because of the momentum of her starting to turn in one shot and continuing in the next, and the fact that the audience has an urgent need to see Mrs. Robinson’s face.

  frame grab 5

  frame grab 6

  It should be noted that after this shot of Mrs. Robinson, we never see her face again for the rest of the scene. In fact, there are only three shots used from here on in: one shot of Benjamin past her shoulder (Frame grab #7 and #9) and shots of her naked breasts (Frame grab #10) and naked mid torso (Frame grab #8 and #12).

  Sam O’Steen:

  Originally I had close shots of her face, nude shots of her breasts and belly and close shots of Benjamin reacting to her that Mike [Nichols, the director] had selected. But when I cut the scene together we both decided it wasn’t funny. We couldn’t figure out why… So I experimented. First I found an outtake [a take not selected by the director] of Benjamin reacting that was shot from behind Mrs. Robinson, over her shoulder. (Frame Grabs #7 & #9 ) It was the only angle where a part of Mrs. Robinson’s body is on screen with him. I decided to use only that outtake whenever I cut to Benjamin so the audience would always know what he was looking at. I didn’t need to cut to Mrs. Robinson’s face at all.… Since I wasn’t locked into using conventional cuts to establish Mrs. Robinson, and I could play her dialogue off screen, I was free to experiment.… I used subliminal cuts of her breasts and belly (Frame Grabs #8, #10 & #12). I tried one-, two-, and three-frame cuts and found out that three frames register, but only like a flash. I had experimented with subliminal cutting before.… You just don’t know if it’ll work.… But I thought it would here because Benjamin can barely look at her, yet he can’t look away. 9

  Showing only Mrs. Robinson’s back and her sexual body parts made her seem disembodied and made a surreal situation seem even more surreal and absurdly funny. Also, what she specifically says — we do get the gist! — is not nearly as interesting as just staying on Benjamin’s face and watching his fear and fascination with her. Also, the actor Dustin Hoffman’s panicked performance completely holds up, and the editor knew that. It was certainly a nervy choice, but it worked superbly.

  The mid torso shots, such as the one shown in Frame grab #8, were actually “stolen” from a shot intended for the end of the scene, when Benjamin pulls her away from the door, which is the last shot of the scene (Frame grab #12). The editor uses this throughout, probably because it was closer on the lower torso than the other angles and would add more shock value. The editor alternates using the same shots of breasts and mid torso twice. In three out of four cases, Benjamin’s eyes are looking up or down in appropriate response to the breasts and mid torso, respectively. An example would be the “out” frame of Benjamin looking downward (Frame grab #7) to the shot of her torso (Frame grab #8).

  frame grab 7

  frame grab 8

  One time, however (the “out” frame is Frame grab #9) he’s staring down as if he were looking at her mid torso when what he is reacting to in the next shot are her breasts (the “in” frame is Frame grab #10). As O’Steen said, “I didn’t care about matching. I was cutting for performance, for the buildup of Benjamin’s panic, and I knew from experience that the audience wouldn’t notice, because they’re having so much fun!”10

  frame grab 9

  frame grab 10

  When the editor cuts from the shot shown in Frame grab #11 to the one seen in Frame grab #12, he underlines Benjamin’s urgent need to get out of the room. The editor cuts out of the over-the-shoulder shot of Benjamin (the “out” frame is Frame grab #11) just as his head ducks down behind Mrs. Robinson’s body. This not only shows Benjamin’s eagerness to flee the room, but also creates a kind of exit cut to smooth the transition to the next shot. That following shot, a sort of entrance cut, starts just when Benjamin’s arm comes into frame and shows him reaching across her torso to push it away (Frame grab #12).

  frame grab 11

  frame grab 12

  The editor holds on this shot as Benjamin’s arm pushes her aside, his hand unlocks the door and he slips out, slamming the door behind him. A clean exit, both visually and dramatically.

  SUSPENSE: REAR WINDOW

  The subjective and objective perspectives have particular significance in suspense as they do in comedy. Both points of view have their value, depending on the situation. Does the audience want to see the hand reach for the gun or see the gun only when it goes off? The anticipation can be more acute if the audience witnesses the gun before the character does. However, the subjective point of view can also be valuable, because the audience is afraid and surprised along with the character. The key is to milk the anticipation and take the time to build the audience’s expectations. Some of the most suspenseful moments in movies are slow-moving, done with subjective camera moves. At the same time the editor has to sustain that tension. He basically has to find the balance between the slow build and the tight rope.

  In a horror movie, which is an intensified variation of suspense, filmmakers prey on the fears and anxieties of the audience, fueling them with the power of the
unknown. The goal for the editor is to never let go of the mood of constant menace. Cross-cutting, that is, showing first the source of terror and then the character waiting in trepidation or trying to escape, is also a classic technique. Cutaways such as a ticking clock can be very useful to maintain the tension and anxiety. Off-screen sounds, such as footsteps approaching, can add another terrifying dimension. The editor must also distinguish between creating fear and showing fear. Cutting to a frightened actor does not necessarily mean that the audience is frightened. That is why cutting to a knife coming at an actor, combined with close-up reactions of his terror, will be more effective because it internalizes the actor’s fear.